Family Ties
by KaiaLuna
Summary: Guess who's back! This is something I wrote while on ff break. Two years! I missed you all. I had an idea and now wrote/started a couple around the central theme. The other two are romance but this is just a little drama/family one. It's Hermione pureblood but a different way than I have at least seen. Hope you like! I've been a bit obsessed with the idea since it popped in my head
1. Chapter 1

Everything changed that day. Or maybe it started the day the prisoners escaped from Azkaban or even further back, the moment he took me, or the moment he made the decision, he had to have them, their money, support and influence three families in one swoop all he had to do was take down the Black sisters, one sister and he'd have them all, have their husbands, have their everything, all he had to do was make me disappear. That was the moment it started. His mistake, his first mistake, before the prophesy, then he had them and he needed them, because there was a prophecy. His mistake though, so long ago, came back so many years later, when the prisoners escaped, when Harry said his name, when we were brought to them, when we stood face to face so many years later, when her wand brought me down and everything changed. He'd made a mistake and now, now they'd all know it.

Bellatrix shrieked as the cruiciatous ripped through her wand and into Hermione… Hermione Granger… a shudder ran through her body and tears well in her eyes as her magic swelled through her screaming as it connected to the girl… to her magic, her daughters magic… "Cassiopia?" She whispered. As the spell gave way and a tear fell.

She shrieked in angry pain and spun around the room, shooting spells at the snatchers as she moved to stand over her daughter who lay shuddering on the floor. She didn't understand, couldn't comprehend but knew without a doubt, had felt in that hateful spell, her dead infants magic. In seconds only her family remained in the room and she bent to touch her daughter, apparating away to safety, there was fear in her eyes as she struggled, "Don't." Bellatrix muttered as they landed in her living room, "There is nowhere for you to go."

"Please?" Hermione questioned more than begged.

"How is this possible?" Bellatrix asked back, shaking her head.

"What?"

"Cassie?"

"Who?"

"My daughter." Bellatrix explained. "You're my daughter." Bellatrix shook her head and waved her wand. Hermione could feel her magic as it rose and saw a glow. Bellatrix let out a sob before waving her wand at herself. "Cassie." She dropped to her knees, "How? Where have you been?"

Hermione backed up a step and then jumped as three people apparated in, the Malfoy's.

"Bella?" Narcissa asked gently.

"It's her Cissa." Bella sobbed, "It's Cassie." She waved her wand, though cast no spell, "How?" She cried, then demanded angrily sweeping to her feet, "How?! Who kept my daughter from me!"

"He said they killed her." Narcissa held up her hands, speaking gently, "You know what he told us Bella." She glanced at the girl, "Are you sure?"

"Cast the spells yourself." Bella waved angrily, "I know my daughter! I know her magic!"

Narcissa moved slowly to Hermione, "Do you know the spells for Familia?"

Hermione nodded slowly, "Sort of, I mean, I've read a little, but, I know who my parents are."

"You were, would have been, only a baby, less that a year when Cassie was kill… when you would have been taken."

Hermione nodded slowly that Narcissa could proceed, not that she thought she'd have much choice, a moment ago she'd been about to be tortured, not about to be, the spell had been started.

She watched the complicated wand movements carefully and recognized the results backing up and shaking her head in disbelief. There was nothing to back up into to sit down but a cabinet against the wall. It banged rather loud in the silent room and she dropped inelegantly to the ground leaning back against it and trying to breathe.

"Cassie." Narcissa breathed out, almost as if it was painful as the same time Bellatrix let out a sigh of "My baby."

Lucius let out a loud growl and slammed his walking stick against the ground, then swung it across the desk, pulling out his wand and casting spells at inanimate objects. Narcissa slowly walked to him and pulled gently to his arm to calm him down.

"Lucius?"

"He did this!" The man exclaimed angrily. "He did this!" He repeated. "Or he had someone do it! He took her and he got us! All of us, not just us either, Nott followed me in and what else has he done! We know not all them were lying about the spells, the damn imperious and the families he threatens! He didn't threaten ours he took it! He took Cassie! We've been loyal but how many purebloods does he betray, how many families does he tear apart? Not my family. Not ours. He's threatened Draco, abused our family status, he stole Cassie. It's over. He's over." Lucius rages.

"What are you saying Lucius?"

"What are we going to do father, turn against the Dark Lord? He'll kill us all." Draco asked nervously.

"Purebloods might be better, by virtue of our long lineages and family status but a wizard is a wizard and the enemy of my enemy is my friend and that creature has made himself the enemy of this family!"

"Cassie is Hermione Granger." Narcissa nodded encouragingly.

"Do NOT call MY daughter that!" Bellatrix hissed angrily tears stinging her eyes, "I'll kill that snake myself." Tears stung her eyes, madness swimming in them.

"Aunt Bella…" Draco tried calmly.

"He TOOK MY DAUGHTER!" She screeched loudly. "He swore those traitors stole and murdered her! HAD PROOF! WITNESSES! He gave me my revenge, he'd promised it to me… well he promised it me and I'll take it, I'll kill him! I'LL KILL HIM!"

"You ok?" Hermione was stunned out of her shock as the weight settled next to her and his quiet voice interrupted the chaos in her mind.

"No." She responded quietly, shaking lightly. "Where are we?"

"Aunt Bella's safe house. Only the family has access."

"What about…"

Draco frowned at her as her voice tapered off, "Who?"

"Her husband?" She whispered even quieter than before.

"Your father?" He whispered back.

Hermione swallowed. "He's going to flip even more than my dad… maybe not as much as Aunt Bella," he lifted an eyebrow and grimaced, "She hasn't been the same since Azkaban, mum says not since… well you." Draco sighed, "Hermi… Cassie… because even if it's hard for you my Aunt, your mom is kind of unstable and is serious about the name and will probably lose it hearing anyone call you by your you know stolen name… well the thing is… I'm sorry. I was… am… you know… me…"

"An elitist snob, a bully and prat?"

"Yeah." He snorted. "Well the first part I was kind of raised to be and I'm sorry about the second, I don't want to be like that though I kind of am the last sometimes. Thing is, I was worse to you, I always sort of liked you, not like, liked you but the challenge in class and bickering with you sort of made the shit outside easier to deal with because I took it out on you and that was never fair."

"Yeah, well, I suppose bickering with was a way to relieve some stress in my life too."

"You were just never a bully the way I was."

"Maybe a bit of a prat though."

"Maybe. You never thought I was evil though, did you?"

The question seemed almost rhetorical but she answered anyway with a small shake of her head. "No."

"Thank you."

"I forgive you too, for the bullying. Thank you for apologizing."

Draco nodded. "You ok now?"

Hermione chuckled and shook her head looking away from her hands and around the room, "Where did they go?"

Draco shrugged, "Once mom got Aunt Bella a little calmed down they left the room, either to get her more calmed down or to plot. She saw I'd moved over here and I guess decided to leave us be for a bit. I think she figured you needed the time and space. In all that, I rather think they forgot about you… no offence… Aunt Bella's rages… she's… a bit unbalanced."

"Lucius too I think." Hermione blushed, "Sorry."

"Only when he gets like that, and he's been drinking more since Azkaban. Mom's sort of holding them, all of us together. It's hard on her."

"You too."

"Them…" He shrugged, "Like I said, mom's keeping them together and me. On the other hand there is the constant terror of the Dark Lord, being a Death Eater and a disappointment, all of us going to die on a whim and trying to keep that from happening." He sighed and tilted his head back against the cabinet, the dark circles under his eyes clearly evident, "Now apparently my cousin is alive after all these years, and is you and we're defecting his insane darkship which in no way lessens the us going to die bit actually instead of on a whim we're going to be targets and insane Aunt Bella is going to make sure we're all front line, dad too because no one" his voice turned angry "and I mean no one messes with family." He started to shake and took a few deep breathes to calm himself before continuing in his previously calm, almost resigned voice and disillusionment in the world, "We are going to die. You and I and them and Potter and Weasel and all of them, we'll all kill each other over nothing because he's a mad man and a mad man tried to stop him and failed so he set an army of children to fight and so children fought and betrayed each other and themselves and families tore each other apart because he manipulated them to or someone else did or they lost sight of each other and the worlds gone as mad as Aunt Bella who tried to torture her own daughter who never died so many years ago but will die just like I will and they will and we'll still keep fighting to not die first and to not let our families die around us so maybe, just maybe our sister or brother or baby can be the you who didn't die so many years later and then maybe, maybe there is hope from his madness, from all our madness and mistakes."

Hermione wasn't even sure if he was talking to her anymore or just to himself but as his words tapered off she wasn't sure how to respond. Slowly, she felt her head slid over and land against his shoulder. He stiffened at the contact, but only for a second before he relaxed, as much as he'd been relaxed before, and they sat there in quiet a long while before he spoke again. "I'm really glad you're alive Cassie."

Hermione still didn't know how to react to any of this, but she did know, one thing, "I'm glad to still be alive too."

"Do you want to send word to your friends you're ok?" He offered after another short silence.

"Can I?" She breathed.

"You aren't a prisoner… well you can't leave… Aunt Bella would go Baallliiistic and I mean bat crazy but yeah, if you know how to, we can send them word… _shite!_ "

"What?" Hermione jerked upright away from him as he jerked forward with the curse.

"We left them in the dungeons." The two shared a glance.

"Look, you pen a note and I'll sneak back, there's no way he'll know anything is amiss already. I can set them free, them and the others."

"They won't trust you."

"Probably not, but it's the only way, seal the letter in a way they'll know it's from you. They'll think I'm tricking them, of course they will, but it will still get them out of the manor before anyone else shows up, if they haven't already and it will at least get them out before anyone notices them! Come on hurry up," He urged, getting up and pulling her to her feet, summoning a quill and parchment. "Unless you want to leave them there!"

Hermione of course was already snatching the quill and parchment as he finished speaking but spared a second to scowl at him before quickly scribbling a note, crossing out a few things, scribbling more and sealing it, "Here, it will do for now. Go!"

Draco nodded and apparated away and directly into his room, it was on the opposite end of the manor but the safest place in case they had guests. He hadn't wanted to worry her but if anyone had come, leaving dead snatchers lying around would have alerted the others to problems if not their betrayal immediately. Sneaking through the manor he heard voices but having spent his childhood sneaking around, and avoiding Death Eaters as much as possible he got to the dungeons without issues, unfortunately they were empty. Draco cursed and made his way upstairs in a secret passage where he could listen in to a conversation between his uncle and a couple lower Death Eaters.

"WHERE IS MY WIFE!"

"I don't know." One man cowered.

"It looks like the prisoners escaped Sir." The other spoke up. "Probably their rescuers killed the Snatchers."

"I can see that." Rodolphus lifted a brow, his voice cool, what I don't see is any evidence of my wife or her sister and her family. So where are they? Who _exactly_ has them? Where were they taken? Bella wouldn't be taken without a fight! Do you see evidence of a fight? That means betrayal, if one of you or these blast Snatchers is behind this, I tell you, I'll kill every last one of them and you, GOOD FOR NOTHING GUARDS! What are you for if not to PROTECT those you are meant to GUARD, it's your JOB to get ALL intel on attacks planned against our families! I'll have your bloody heads on spikes adorning my gates! FIND MY WIFE!"

The men cowered away from him as Rabastan came in snearing at them, "The Snatchers have traces of Black and Malfoy magic, I can only guess one of them attacked Bella and Cissa, took them in the back. It's the only way they would have gone down without a fight. You know Bella, she'd have torn the place apart and Cissa is no slouch, Blacks are damn powerful." He smirked a moment with pride before frowning and shaking his head, "Bloody cowards. If they weren't dead." He spit and glared at the two men, "Why wasn't there a warning about a threat to our families." He growled, "and from the inside! Betrayers! The Dark Lord will hear." He threatened darkly, "He'll discover the part you played."

"No." They both paled.

"No part." The second insisted, "We haven't heard any threats against your families.

"Of course the light thinks you are all high targets." The other added, "It's known, the Dark Lord, all of you know but no real threats, nothing new, nothing solid, no attacks and none of ours!"

"We swear!"

"Liars." Draco, let himself out of hiding, the almost apathy in his voice saddened his uncles, the boy had quickly become disillusioned with the world, his childhood so quickly lost, perhaps never really there not the way it should have been. "You are betrayers of our family."

"No." The men paled even further.

"Where are the prisoners?" Draco asked them, his voice unchanging.

"Prisoners?" The other stuttered.

Draco lifted an eyebrow, "When I left here for my Aunts safe house, there were prisoners in the dungeons, oh an hour ago, now there are no prisoners and there are you two, so where are the prisoners?"

"Escaped." They gulped. "In the rescue attempted, the one that killed the Snatchers and um, sent your family on the run?" One suggested.

"Escaped?" Draco lifted a brow, "In a rescue attempt? Is that the story you concocted?" Draco chuckled mirthlessly, "So what of our family? Do we need to be killed before you attempt the lies? Then again, Manor wards aren't broken… or did you come back to try to do that yourself? I assure you, neither of you have the power. Then there is my Aunt. Was she not supposed to be here when the Snatchers came? Or was it your plan all along for her to be? Whose side are you on? Maybe you are the rescue attempt? Or are you the assassins? Why did they come here to the Manor? We have our own prisoners from raids but Snatchers don't bring us prisoners, until today, until this. How far do the lies go? Did you send the Snatchers here? Did you take the Prisoners? Was it all your plan? To what end?" He finished his barrage of questions and just stared at them, the anger of his uncles radiating through the room but the fear of the other two men permeating the air.

"Nu… nu… no?" One of the men ventured after a tense moment of silence.

"No what?" Draco asked softly.

"We have no idea what happened." The other nearly sobbed. "Please. We were just guessing, you had prisoners, we knew that and they're gone and the Snatchers are dead, what were we supposed to think but that it was a botched rescue? Please!"

"Are loyal to the Dark Lord?" Rodolphus demanded.

"Of course."

"To our families?"

"Of…"

Draco cut the second man off with a decisive, "No."

"We are!"

"You told those Snatchers to bring those prisoners here."

"To help bring your family back into his grace!"

"My mother killed them to protect my Aunt and her daughter. As soon as you tell him, and you will, you sign their, all our death warrants. By your own admission your loyalty is to him not us." With that Draco turned his back and apparated away.

He found her where he'd left her, her only movement to a small window seat. He settled in across her and handed over the envelope. Her breath caught, "They escaped." He rushed out to reassure her. She nodded, tears still in her eyes, "Know how to get it to them."

Hermione shrugged, "I might know a spell but I don't know if it will work."

"Better try it." Draco encouraged her, "They'll be… dangerous with fear… dangerous to themselves."

She nodded in agreement and whispered, "I need my wand." Then looked at him, "If I can be trusted with it." She lifted her chin stubbornly.

"You're my cousin, _not_ our prisoner."

"Right." She nodded her voice soft and trembling as she turned to look out the window again.

"I didn't think to get it at the manor." He told her gently as he held out his own without another word. A wizards wand was a very personal thing, the offer said a great many things.

Hermione took it gently and with great reverence as she looked to him, meeting his eyes and nodding slightly offering a weak smile and hoping it portrayed the gratitude and understanding of the depth of trust and emotion in the moment.

She heard the intake of his breath as she cast the small cut on her skin and began the spell, not only was she using his wand, but casting a blood spell. It was advanced magic, the wand would need to accept her, accept that in the moment, it was his will and desire for this spell but their needed to be a bond. Their shared blood line helped but a lot of trust on both sides needed to be opened as their magic mingled for a moment and the wand accepted her. She placed a small blood seal on the seal already there and whispered a spell then they watched as the envelope folded in on itself and disappeared with a tiny puff of smoke leaving a soft scent of herbs behind.

The two teens sat on opposite ends of the small window seat staring out the window in silence even after hearing the two pops of apparition and loud voices in the other room as Rodolphus and Rabastian arrived and were enlightened. Shouting and crashing and then quiet surrounded them again as darkness stole into the room.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry and Ron appeared at the beach by shell cottage and Harry dropped to his knees as pain ripped through his chest. _Hermione._ She had been like a sister to him since they met.

Ron stood looking out at the ocean, pain in every line of his body, "She'd want us to keep going." His voice cracked. "She'd want us to…" He sobbed.

"She's alive." Harry spat." Don't talk about her like she isn't!"

"Harry, mate." Ron cried.

Harry pulled himself up, "She's alive, I know it." He insisted.

Dobby nodded and pulled at his ears, "Dobby cans go back and look for her."

"No Dobby." Harry shook his head, "It's too dangerous and she isn't there, you said yourself they were gone. All of them left and they took Hermione but we're going to find her. I'm going to find her and get her back." Harry was determined even as his eyes watered and pain filled his soul at the thought of Hermione and what she could be going through.

Fleur tended to the wounded and Harry sat with Bill and Ron trying to figure out where they may have taken Hermione, what their next step could be. Ron suggested going after another Horcrux, continuing on the mission would be what Hermione would want. Harry refused to give up on Hermione. She'd never give up on either of them.

"She never came after me Harry!"

"You left!" Harry spat, "It's different! I'm not leaving her with them!"

"She's already dead! You know she'd want us to keep fighting!" Ron cried. "I love her… loved her Harry but we can't stop fighting because she's gone, we can't give it all up and risk everything and you know it! We'll get them Harry, we'll get the stupid Malfoy's no one wants them more than me! I never even told her but I loved her Harry! You'll get the slimy snake bastard and I'll kill them, for her! I swear I will but Harry we can't give up the fight!"

"I'm not giving up on her! Not until I know and we don't know! But I feel it, I feel her Ron and she's alive!"

"Harry?" Bill interrupted.

"You don't feel her Harry! You want to feel her, you want her to be alive. So do I! I want that more than anything but she's gone!" Ron sobbed louder, his face red and blotchy.

"Why take her if she's dead! Her body would have been there! And I do feel her Ron, I can feel that she's alive and out there and I don't know where but she needs me and I'll find her, I'll never give up on my sister!"

"Blood magic." Bill shook his head. "Please Harry," he sighed, "Tell me you didn't."

"Uh, er…" He turned red, and looked away. "Well…"

"What type?"

"Um… well… that's uh… more Hermione's thing… you know types and spells and such…"

"Harry." Bill sighed.

"I know, ok, we know, she told me it was old and dangerous and stupid but war is dangerous and stupid and scary and crazy and she's the only thing, the only real thing that's like family I have, well her and all of you but her and I, we're all we really have and out there… we really were all we had, we needed each other. We needed more than… look we know how crazy it was and how dangerous it could, it can be but we did it and you don't get to lecture us. Hell, I'd tie myself to the family if I could too and so would she, we'd do anything to protect each other and you guys. If you don't understand that I'm sorry. Believe me though, she's out there, she's alive and I'm going to find her."

Bill nodded slowly, "I get it, I get it and I'll help you."

"You will?"

"Of course." Bill gave a sad smile, "You are our family Harry, we don't need old Blood Magic to tie us to you for that because I promise you, anyone in this family would do anything to protect you and Hermione too so if she's out there, still alive, we're going to do anything we can to get her back."

"She's alive?" Ron whispered, "For real alive?" He sounded afraid to believe.

"For real alive, I promise." Harry answered gently, noticing the tremor in his friends hands, his whole body, "And we're going to get her back."

"Oui." Fleur agreed walking into the room, she looked exhausted but still managed to sink gracefully into a seat next to her husband, "We will, zo what iz the plan?"

"Find her." Harry sighed, "If only we had her because the best person to do something like this is her." Harry swiped angrily at the tears that threatened to spill though they hadn't quite fallen, "I feel so helpless without her."

"We have this." Ron held up her beaded bag. "We don't have her but we have this and _years_ of Hermione in our heads telling us how to study… we just have to do what she's taught us… just you know… better."

Bill nodded approvingly at his younger brother and Harry grinned at him through wet eyes. "I have this too, and we'll get it back to her." Harry held up her wand from his pocket, "Let's keep it inside so it's safe."

"Good idea." Ron agreed taking the wand reverently and putting it into a pocket in the bag before pulling out some books, "Not sure where to start."

"Hand some over." Bill motioned.

"Oui, moi aussi." Fleur motioned.

"I can help." Luna's dreamy voice floated to them from her previously unnoticed position by the door.

"Great." Harry smiled at her in welcome, though it was still full of worry and fear.

"She'll be alright Harry." Luna offered as she sat.

"How do you know?" Ron asked handing her some books."

Luna shrugged, "It's Hermione." She said not looking up as she opened a book.

Ron nodded and opened a book staring sightlessly for a minute before forcing himself to focus, Luna was right, she was Hermione, she'd survive as long as she could until they found her and they'd find her, Harry said she was alive and Bill believed him because of some spell, that made his gut churn with jealousy, they'd done a spell together, her and Harry, without him but he'd find her and profess his love once and for all and then… then… well he didn't know but he'd rescue her and she'd be safe and hopefully love him too.

They poured over the books, the only sound the occational grunt, scratch of quill for a notes or turn of pages until a small sizzle, crackle and puff of smoke brought the scent of hebs and a folded paper that began to unfold to a sealed letter in front of Harry.

"HERMIONE!" He shouted and ran a finger over the seal.

"Open it!" Ron demanded.

Harry tried but it wouldn't, he shook his head and frowned then gasped and yanked his robes for his wand before making a small cut to his finger and putting it to the seal. The scent of herb changed only slightly, an accent that accentuated the herb as a line of smoke rose and disappeared along with the scent and the seal broke leaving only Hermione's usual seal a small otter. Breaking it carefully and with shaking fingers as he unfolded the note and read aloud.

 _Harry, I'm safe. I'm so worried about you. How did you escape? Are you safe? Ron? I don't know where I am but I'm safe. So much has happened. My head is spinning, it's all so crazy but I'm alive and safe. Oh Harry, please tell me you're safe. Don't do anything crazy. Did you manage to get my bag? I lost it at the Manor, that and my wand. I can't get back there to them. I've borrowed this one to send you this. Use my bag, everything you'll need to continue on is in it. I'll find you when I can, as soon as I can. Please don't worry about me. I promise I'm safe as I can be for now. I need to find a way to contact the Order and take care of a few things, so much is changing, I think, oh goodness Harry so much has changed and my head is spinning but I promise you I'm safe. Promise me that you'll be careful, you and Ron, don't either of you do anything reckless. Oh I hope you have my bag, you'll need it. I'll find you as soon as I can, I'll need a wand, I need my wand but it's probably lost for good. Just don't worry about me. Keep on and be safe. I love you my brother. You and Ron take care._

Shaking he put the letter down, "She's ok."

"What's she on about though?" Ron frowned, "Do you suppose it's a trick? A lie from the Malfoy's they must have made her write it Harry. We have to keep on and find her!" Ron grabbed up one of the books even as Harry shook his head.

"They couldn't have known about the Blood Magic, only we knew."

"They found out!" Ron shouted.

"Not even you knew Ron." Harry protested, "We did it on the run, after you left, only she and I knew and she'd never have told anyone."

"If they tortured her!" He protested again.

Harry felt ill at the idea, "I'm sending a letter back. Hermione would never give me up, give any of us up, not even under torture and there is no way she'd have sent the letter with Blood Magic if they forced her to try to contact us."

 _Mione, Dobby helped us escape. We tried to get you but you were gone. All the Snatchers dead. I got your wand… here enclosed… Ron got your bag which by your request we will keep safe with us. I wish you would tell me about all the change, what has your head spinning my sister? I want to find you. Everything inside me is screaming to find you and has been since we escaped the Manor. Everything in me knew you were alive and I wanted to find you. We've been researching in your books a way to find you, I've even told Bill and Fleur and Ron about the Blood Magic, Luna's overheard and we're all researching a way to locate you. You've instructed me to continue on our mission though. Once he gets over the anger and mistrust of the letter, Ron thinks the Malfoy's made you send it but I know there's no way you'd send a Blood Magicked letter under duress, well once he gets over that he'll start gloating he was right. Since we returned Ron knew you'd want us to continue our mission. I could never give up on finding you but he knew you'd want us not to foolishly give up the fight and search for you. My sister has spoken though and I'll continue the fight but keep me informed Hermione. If you are in any danger I'll come for you. Stay safe sister though somehow I cannot believe we are ever safer than together where we can protect each other. I love you._

He read his letter aloud when he finished.

"Tell her she can reach me here and I'll get what she needs to anyone else in the Order." Bill offered.

Harry nodded and added the note…

 _PS. Address your order business to Bill Weasley at Shell Cottage he'll get it to whomever you need. It's where I am now though as you know, won't be long… don't suppose you had a lead on where to next in this bag of goodies? Again, love from me and all of us._

He sealed the letter and recut his finger before carefully performing the spell Hermione taught him. It wasn't as good or strong as hers but the intent behind the magic made the bond strong which held the spell strong and the letter disappeared in its fragrant puff of smoke.

Hermione was surprised by the reply in the shadowed room and read it quietly, wand in her hand and tears in her eyes.

"What's this?" Bellatrix's eyes made Hermione jump and her wand lift in reflex. Draco's hand was gentle on her arm.

"It's ok." He told her softly. "What does it say?"

"He's safe, their all safe." She whispered.

"And?"

"Dobby got them out, took them to Bill. They grabbed my bag and wand on the way out."

"Didn't send your stuff?"

"It was all of ours, all we, they'd need for the mission."

Draco nodded, understanding, she'd told them to continue without her, "They coming looking for you?"

"Harry said they were but I told him not to."

"Will he listen?" Draco snorted disbelieving.

"To me." She nodded.

"He also gave me a way to contact the order, tell them what's happened…" she waved around the room weakly.

"Does he know? Does he… believe?" Draco frowned.

Hermione shook her head and looked away, " _I_ don't quite believe" she snorted "and I'm here." She swallowed and looked back, "I didn't tell him, just that I'm safe and things have changed."

"He accepted that?"

Hermione shrugged, "For now. Harry trusts me Draco, he's my brother." She met his eyes, "This kind of magic, it takes of trust."

"It's also…"

"Dangerous and stupid and crazy and everything else you want to rant about believe me, I know and I told Harry before we did it so please spare me another lecture on the evils of Blood Magic if I haven't heard it, I've read it but we did it and it's done, get over it. Harry for all intents and purposes and magical signatures and lineages is my brother."

Draco held up his hands in platitude, "Ok, fine, just, you should still be careful with it, the spell itself might be done but the little side spells…"

"I know… still dangerous but so is war and right now, it's the safest way to talk to him and will be the safest way to find him when that time comes. Anyways, he's given us a way to contact the Order so I don't need to use Blood Magic, they know it's me and I'm safe, not being held hostage."

"They might think you're imperiosed or something."

"Even if I were, you'd have to know about the bond to make me use it and no one but Harry and I knew. He knows it's me, so they know, it's me."

"Only if he's contact them."

"He was with them."

"Was?"

"He moves. We always move."

"Smart." Draco nodded.

"Until we weren't." Hermione shook her head, "He got careless and said his name, we got caught. It's a mistake they won't make again."

"I take it back." Draco snorted, "You are smart, they are stupid, so stupid and you think they'll last a day without you?"

She sighed, "War is getting to us, restless, tired, angry, we're all disillusioned Draco and we haven't had warm beds with fluffy pillows and soft sheets to crawl in this past year to soothe weary bones or mum and dad to soothe the worries from our brows and protect us from the dark living in the shadows of our homes."

His face grew dark, "No you haven't had a meglamaniac living in your home terrorizing your family, your aunt growing steadily more crazy, your father steadily more drunk, your mother sobbing herself to sleep and Death Eaters in every corner trying to make you snap. To turn you into one of them, to turn you as crazy as your aunt or to torture you for their own enjoyment. Say the wrong thing, make the wrong move and you die or your mother does. You run about in the woods playing hero while we sit in dark corners, slaves told to kill and watch as others are killed or it will be us or our families, our friends. We watch as our friends are killed because they didn't follow an order or they did and failed or succeeded but not well enough so instead of death their reward is torture or to kill someone else. All of this because so many years ago that same psycho stole you and convince the family, the whole damn world the mudblood bitch murdered you and the fucking blood traiter Prewett twins protected her! He offered revenge and got his screws in our families and the whole time, the whole fucking time there you were living with muggles! Free and safe! This whole year, all these years at school you've sauntered around, free to be whoever you wanted to be! Do whatever you wanted to do! Don't you get it! No one protects me! No one has ever protected me! You died and she nearly lost me over the trauma and all they wanted was their revenge and for me to be perfect. To be quiet! Never cry Malfoy's don't cry! Stand up straight Malfoy's don't slouch! Don't run, don't jump don't play! Malfoy's have decorum! Our house was a mausoleum, a crypt through out my childhood. It housed what once was the Malfoy and Black families after their revenge failed. After Aunt Bella and the Uncles went to Azkaban! I was all that was left, everything we were supposed to be together but I had to better because you were gone and we were just fucking ghosts in a crypt of what was! Living for the image of a dead family that meant nothing anymore! I was supposed to be the perfect fucking pureblood, perfect grades, perfect looks, perfect seeker, perfect Death Eater! And all this time! All these years… he swiped angrily at the tears, you were there." He waved at her, "Under our nose, under my nose. Alive. Free." Draco sighed his voice turned resigned, "Our captor stole you but at least he set you free." Then he walked from the room.


	3. Chapter 3

"Draco!" She called after him. He stalled but didn't stop, "Draco please." This time he stopped and turned. She hesitated, "I'm sorry." He nodded. "Please don't go." She added quietly.

Draco hesitated but slowly walked back into the room to stand beside her again.

"Mudblood bitch?"

"Going to lecture me on my language?" He snorted.

"Who?" Hermione hesitated, "I mean…"

"Does it matter?" Draco asked quietly, "She was probably a scape goat, "If she ever had anything to do with it, we'll never know if it was by choice, given the Prewett involvement, the obsessive loyalty to the Order of the Weasel and his whole family..." Draco tapered off with a shrug, "We'll never know will we?"

"It could be why I'm not dead." Hermione offered, "If it was a spell, they hid me instead. Bellatrix got her revenge before he found out about the betrayal."

Draco frowned and thought. The Lestrange's and Malfoy's having entered quietly during his rant, had a similar expression on their faces.

"A sound theory." Lucius nodded.

"Yeah, smart, I've said it for years." Draco nodded with an eye roll, "We'll still never know for sure.

"Draco." His mother started softly.

"Yes mother, excuse the smartass remark, it's unbecoming." Draco nodded to Hermione.

"No," Narcissa spoke again, her voice wavering, "Yes, but I don't care, I, I'm sorry Draco. I'm so sorry, for everything."

"I know." Draco nodded.

"We've made poor choices son, you were always…"

Draco nodded.

"Loved." Narcissa finished for her husband, though Draco hadn't needed her too, it was nice to hear, very, rare so all the more so.

"I love you too." He offered with a weak smile for her.

"Can we… I'm sorry… I'm still having a hard time." Rabastian spoke up.

"Yeah." Rodolphus nodded still staring at his daughter… his daughter, the last he'd seen her she fit in the crook of one of his arms and smiled toothless up at him as he'd tickled her tiny nose.

"She's Cassie." Bellatrix smiled, not her usual insane smile but something softer, more natural. "She's our baby Rolph."

"Well we see that, what I'm having a hard time with is how, where, when, what… Rabastian took a breath. How are you alive? Where have you been? When did you figure it all out and what the hell are we going to do?"

"I have no idea how I survived or what happened back then but I grew up with muggle parents, they are, were lovely people who raised me very well and were not only understanding that I was a witch but quite proud when I got my letter to Hogwarts. I figured it out about this," she waved around the room, "well Bellatrix did when she tried to Cruciatius me and then we did a Familia Spell or Narcissa did because Bellatrix already knew and apparently, at least according to Lucius and Bellatrix in the rant I heard and the shouts since, you are switching sides in the war and going to help take down Lord…"A few hisses halted her before she said the name, " _him_ for his part in stealing me and plotting to kill me to get your families on his side." Hermione thought for a second, "I believe that was all your questions."

"You Cruicio'd our daughter?" Rodolphous glared at his wife.

"I didn't know she was our daughter until the spell hit." She hissed. "The hate I felt for the girl contrasted with the love for our daughter and the magic ripped through me, screaming she was my daughter and broke the spell immediately.

"It did barely touch me." Hermione nodded, "Like a zap and then warmth instead of pain."

"That was Bella's magic." Narcissa smiled, "Her love in the bond instead of hate. It's what told her you were Cassie, had you recognized it you would have realized. It was quite painful for Bella on the other hand."

"Why?" Hermione frowned, as usual hungry for information.

"Hurting you, someone she loves more than her life, is more painful than even the cruciatious." Narcissa offered gently.

Hermione nodded with a thoughtful frown, cataloging the information away in her brain. "So now what?"

"You said we contact the Order." Draco shrugged.

"Right." Hermione nodded.

"First," Lucius nodded, "We have other contacts to make, plans we should go in with."

"Plans?" Hermione questioned.

"I'll kill him." Bellatrix seethed, "I'll kill him myself." Madness seeping back into her eyes.

"Not alone." Narcissa insisted softly but firmly. "Draco, who can you trust, from school, truly trust? Neutral children, ones against the cause, afraid for their families but not really true to the cause."

Draco lifted a brow, "I was never _encouraged_ to make _friends_."

Narcissa sucked in a breath, her lip quivering but strength in her spine, she nodded, "No one?"

"Blaise… and Theo. I wish I could say Greg and Vincent but… probably Greg, he's soft always was and not very bright, he'd follow me anywhere I went but never had the stomach for picking on younger years or using the dark spells, he prefers his critters and the quiet. Not Vincent though he's a follower for sure and not very smart but he liked dark spells and making others hurt. Pansy… no clue, she was always after the Malfoy name. Greengrass, a mystery, she stayed out of trouble, out of… well everything I'd say she was neutral but can I trust that? I was taught not to trust anything. Blaise and Theo I know for sure, if I were to guess I'd bet on Greg and Daph. Almost forgot Adelaide Murton, Slytherin but not my circle, the quiet sort, neutral if not outright quietly against." Draco shrugged, "that's all I can think of, I don't exactly have a class roster and I only remembered her because Theo dated her for a minute back in fourth."

"The Zabini's have been neutral since the start." Lucius nodded, "We thought of them as well. Nott became a zealot and joined after we did, I'm not certain I can pull him out but if you think his son." Lucius nodded again and then shook his head, "Parkinson," Hmmm, "I've no idea on him. Out to save his neck, always out for status, might follow the families, might betray us. Better to be cautious. Greengrass was threatened in but that was the senior I'll tread careful with the family while you talk with the daughters, I believe there are two? Approach with caution and see if they know others. We'll gather who we can. Infiltrate with caution. I also believe we can get your godfather on the right side of things."

"I tell you I had suspicions he worked against the Dark Lord for years!" Bellatrix raged.

"He saved Draco and killed Dumbledore." Narcissa protested.

"Exactly!" Bellatrix spun on her. "His godson! He's loyal to this family Narcissa!" Bellatrix spun her finger pointed angrily at her sister, "A fact you never shared with me! His godson! He's loyal to this family! Above all! Above that THAT AHHAHHHH" Bellatrix screeched loudly insanity taking over. Rodolphus moved closer but Bellatrix shoved him away brandishing her wand and blasting things to bits around her. "I KNEW HE WAS A TRAITOR! I KNEW HE WAS AGAINST THE CAUSE! AND YOU TRICKED ME! OF COURSE HE WOULD PROTECT DRACO! HIS GODSON!"

"His loyalty was to us sister. Always to us. It would be to us or he would die. That was the point. Severus was not a traitor. He was, he is loyal." Breathing heavy Bellatrix slowly calmed, "He saved Draco and believer or not he will protect Draco and Cassie again." Narcissa continued. "He will fight with us." Breathing heavy Bellatrix nodded but swept from the room, the sound of things breaking marking her path down the hall.

"As I was saying," Lucius continued after a short pause, as though there had been no interruption, "I believe we can get your godfather on the right side of things Draco, which means we'll have an in at the school. We can take back Hogwarts, take apart some of his inner circle from the inside and join with the Order while he's weakened to take him down."

"Not exactly." Hermione interrupted. Lucius looked at her with a lifted brow. "Well, I mean, it's a lovely plan, there's just a small problem."

"What's that?" Rabastian asked with a frown.

"Horcrux's."

"Where did you learn about a nasty thing like that?" Rodolphus demanded.

"I gave her one." Lucius frowned, "Well not her, her friend." He defended quickly at the mans dark look, "Unknowingly, I didn't exactly know the book was one, just that it was severely dark magic the Dark Lord left with me. It was after the events I found out what it was but the damn thing was destroyed by Dumbledore, years ago."

"He made more." Hermione offered with a nervous shrug.

"How many more?" Lucius demanded nervously, rubbing his temples frustrated.

"Dumbledore believed… well 7 is a magical number."

"He split his soul 7 times?" Narcissa gasped.

"No wonder he looks like that." Rabastian shivered. He wasn't the only one in the room to do so.

"Harry, Ron and I, well we've destroyed the locket, Slytherins Locket, and Dumbledore he destroyed the Riddle's diary and the ring, Marvolo's family ring. So we are looking for more. We just aren't really sure what exactly they are. The school was important to him so I think something from the houses maybe, like the locket. I did some research, each founder had something, the Sword of Gryffindor but that wasn't one, we used it to destroy the locket actually. Then there was Ravenclaws Diadem but no one has seen it in at least a century and the Hufflepuff Cup but I can't think of another from Gryffindor and it would still leave a seventh."

"The snake." Lucius shuddered. "If he made the seventh since his return… it's the snake."

Hermione nodded, "That's quite possible."

"He might not have made one from Gryffindor either, given the house rivalry." Narcissa offered, "We will certainly try though."

"If I'm contacting Slytherins they can start looking for the Diadem." Narcissa glanced worriedly at her son, "I'll be alright mother, how much more dangerous can school be than the Manor?"

"Be careful." Lucius nodded at his son. "I'll be in contact with Severus immediately."

"So I'll know upon my reception if I'm to be handed over as a traitor or my godfather is on our side." Draco nodded. "Less time to stress about it." Narcissa looked stricken for a moment but quickly steeled herself, Draco sent her a small smile that bordered on a sad smirk, "I'll be fine mother, I promise." She nodded and sent him a small sad smile in return.

Hermione reached out and took his hand, surprising herself as she gave it a gentle squeeze. He returned the gesture, neither said anything but let go and Draco walked from the room. Hermione shivered as she stood, alone with Narcissa, Lucius and the Lestrange brothers.

Lucius nodded at her and moved to the floo, taking something from his pocket he opened the small container and tossed a fine powder into the fire and stepped in calling out his destination. The Headmasters office at Hogwarts.

"Tea?" Narcissa offered gently.

Hermione nodded absently still watching though the green flames had gone back to low flicking yellow and orange. Rabastian moved to the hearth and levitated another log onto the flame stirring it up so the room lit brighter and warmth spread chasing away the evening chill.

"Cas?" He motioned to a chair and Hermione consented to sit. "I know today has been overwhelming for you."

"Overwheming?" Hermione chuckled breathlessly.

"Take the tea." Rabastian urged her towards the tea Narcissa had floating towards her.

Hermione frowned at the cup, was it ready already? "Thank you." Hermione glanced at a worried looking Narcissa.

"There's a room made up for you but you should eat something and then you can rest." Narcissa offered gently.

Rabastian nodded, "Drink up." He urged again, "Your likely in shock."

Hermione shot him an annoyed look and he glared back at her. She sipped the tea. "It's not laced with calming draught?"

"You don't seem to need it. You aren't hysterical." Rabastian chuckled, "I can find some if you like." Hermione glared again and he chuckled more, "It's just tea, and the food isn't laced either. Just food, so drink some more and then come eat. After you can sleep and tomorrow. Well tomorrow we bring the fight to the Dark Lord and he'll face the wrath of Dark and Light." Hermione frowned at him and his large hand reached out. She flinched back and for a second he hesitated before his hand continued forward and smoothed the frown line from between her eyes, "Relax little one. No one hurts our family." He gave a half smile. "I remember holding you when you were born, so tiny, so perfect. Lungs so strong the nurse swore you part banshee, then she put you in my arms and you gave a sigh, a little sneeze and fell asleep. My little god daughter. I've been many things my life light and good, dark and evil but always, always I've protect my family, the people I loved. At least I tried to. I failed. I failed because of him. I lost you. My family, we're all wraiths because we lost you but now you're back and whatever I am, what all I have been." He ran a finger down her face, "I will not fail to protect our family again, your father and I will protect you. He just… your mother needs him, he'd be here with you himself but she needs him."

"She's really insane isn't she?"

Rabastian slowly nodded, "She's lived your loss, every second of Azkaban. Lived his lies. You can't know what she went through. How… good she used to be." The broken look in his eyes tore at her heart.

"Tell me about her. Please?"

Rabastian sat back and waved his wand, "You eat, I'll talk, deal?" Hermione nodded and he lifted a brow. Narcissa nodded and waved her wand, food appeared on the coffee table, another wave of her wand and a small side table rose and slid over next to Hermione's chair. Narcissa rose and made Hermione a plate, bringing it to her then filled her tea cup.

"I'll leave you. I've had the blue room made up for her, it has the nicest view. Not to late, it has been a long day." She instructed Rabastian before turning to Hermione, "Rest well Cassie, we'll talk in the morning. If you need anything at all just call out for me, please." Reaching out she squeezed her hand and made her way from the room, sweeping gracefully out.

"Eat." Rabastian motioned to the plate. Hermione nodded and took a small bite. "Bella." Rabastian sighed. "We met on the train, on the way to Hogwarts." He smirked. "Rolph was too cool for his little brother." He chuckled. "After he got me through the barrier, onto the train and into a compartment and my trunk loaded, cuffed my head and mussing my hair, warned me not to let anyone pick on me, I was a Lestrange after all. He went on his way to find his friends." Rabastian rolled his eyes in fond memory. "Then in comes this little wild thing with crazy black curls and fire in her laughing black eyes pulling her trunk. I offered to help and she stubbornly tells me she can do it herself after attempting to lift it she looks at me haughtily and demands if I'm going to help her." He laughed. "Of course like a gentleman I do and we sit, she informs me she is Bellatrix Black and I introduce myself. It's the start of a beautiful friendship. She's beautiful and brilliant and becomes my best friend. Rolph knew the moment he notices her that he's going to marry her… not the moment he meets her mind you, the moment he notices her. She's sixteen then…


	4. Chapter 4 (The Past)

_"Oi" Rodolphus grabs his chest, and takes in a breath, "She's, she's, mate, she's stunning. Magnificent. I have to know her. Who is she? I think I'm in love."_

 _Rabastian laughs, "Don't be a git Rolph, you know Bella."_

 _"Bella? Your little friend Bella? No way, that can't be your Bella, that is my future my wife."_

 _"Come off." Rabastian shoves his brother. "Hey Bell!" Rabastian calls waving to Bellatrix._

 _"Do not call me that Rab, or shout at me." She rolls her eyes and shoves her friend, laughing before kissing his cheek. "Hello Rodolphus."_

 _"Bellatrix." He nods to her and smiles looking her over, "You look, lovely."_

 _"Bella." She rolls her eyes at him and turns to survey the crowd on the platform, "I believe my sister and your other friends are over that way." She waved absently to the right while linking arms with Rabastian and beginning to walk towards the train._

 _"So, what will this year bring us hmmm?"_

 _"Stop fishing Bell."_

 _She made a face at him."_

 _"You know how we left things."_

 _"I know how the Lion felt and I know how_ you _do as well, it's not as if he's not pure enough, the Prewett's are a wonderful family, everyone would approve of the match."Rabastian gave her a hard look and she just sighed and tossed up her hands, "fine, have it your way." Tugging him along into the train while their trunk floated behind. In the compartment, underway a ruckess went up and the Prewett twins swept into the compartment. Bellatrix smirked at him, and then them, "Well hello boys, what brings you by?"_

 _Gideon just tossed up his arms and grumbled before dropping down into a seat across from her and glaring out the window. Fabian stood there and flushed then shifted from one foot to the other, "Hey Rab. Bella."_

 _"You know people saw you come in here."_

 _"They were distracted." He shrugged._

 _"They'll see you leave." Rabastian sighed._

 _"So what." Bellatrix grumbled._

 _"Gryffindors. Slytherins." Gideon pointed around the room. Grumbling some more before slumping back in his seat. "Freaking star crossed, penguin bull puppy love poxy getting in the way of good fun. Well go on and make nice this is the one and only time I am agreeing to be witness to you two getting randy in any way and only because of the blackmail for getting caught snogging that Ravenclaw. I don't want to see it anymore than you. Keep it private. I cover for you, you cover for me but no looky see. Fucking poof wanker. Hurry on with it. Make nice then" He waved at them and turned to glare out the window again._

 _"You heard him." Bella giggled, "Hurry up and make nice."_

 _Fabian and Rabastian were both blushing and turned to look at each other._

 _"Missed you this summer."_

 _"Me too." Rabastian looked away._

 _"So break ups over then yeah?"_

 _"You're still a Gryffindor."_

 _"And you're still a Slytherin and we can still sneak around and snog." Fabian grinned at him. "So breakup is off. I figure it was more of a break anyways. I mean when you got me in the Diagon Alley late July… that was…" Rabastian blushed and Gideon groaned and Fabian laughed as he advanced on the boy to kiss him hard but fast, they did have an audience after all. Bella whistled and Gideon groaned._

 _"We should go." Fabian laughed._

 _"See you then." Rabastian grinned._

 _"Does your brother know?" Fabian asked with a frown at the door._

 _"That I like boys?"_

 _"That you like me?"_

 _Rabastian shrugged, "Yeah. Probably." Fabian nodded and the two boys left the compartment._

 _It was a week later at dinner a Ravenclaw hexed Rabastian violently, Bella's response was swift and vicious it impressed Rodolphous but his concern was for his brother so while the back of his mind took note the forefront of his mind was mentally cataloging his brother for injury. Rodolophus visited his brother in his room that night with potions for his wounds. He wouldn't complain enough to go to the hospital wing._

 _"She really took that Ravenclaw down." Rodolphus showed his interest before he hissed, "But I'm still going to pay him back myself."_

 _"The boy is a product of his world." Rabastian shrugged trying to hide his pain, both physical and mental, but it was hard to hide from his brother and hiding for this long had taken its' toll, this attack had been to open, there was no more hiding._

 _"What is that supposed to mean?"_

 _"Me, Khan, Accrington. The attacks are happening against us because of what we are."_

 _"And what are you?" Rodolphus hissed back._

 _"I'm gay, Khan and Accrington are black. You might not like it brother but outside our elite is a whole world and those coming into it are bringing in their own world of hate and muggles are_ very _good at hate."_

 _"How do you know any of this?"_

 _"I remember the first half blood to call me a poof. It's where the word came from. It's all in good fun but it means gay and it didn't start as a nice term, not in the muggle world and I've been called some not nice muggle words too. Ones I needed to look up."_

 _"Like what?" Rodolphous knew it wasn't just words either, his brother had been hurt. People had been hurting his brother under his nose and he'd missed it. Never again._

 _"Bent and Cock Jockey and it doesn't matter. Out there, in their world, what color you are and who you have sex with, it matters. It matters more than family, more than status, more than anything. Muggleborns are bringing in that hate, contaminating our world with it and tearing apart our families." Rabastian looked away from his brother. "He's not the only one. They want me to be ashamed, for my family to be ashamed of me."_

 _"Look at me!" Rodolphus grabbed his brothers hand squeezing it painfully, "You are a Lestrange. You are a pureblood wizard. You are my brother. You have nothing to ever be ashamed about. Done nothing to shame your family. You are a LESTRANGE. You should feel nothing but PRIDE in who you are. Do you understand me."_

 _"Yes." Rabastian squeezed his brothers hand back. "Bella says the same thing."_

 _"I'm going to destroy that mudblood bastard and anyone who ever hurts you."Rodolphus slipped a sleeping draught in his brothers potions as Bellatrix came in._

 _"I brought him…" She held up potions._

 _"How long?" Rodolphus demanded. She hesitated. "How long has he been bullied like this Bellatrix. How long has my brother been targeted and hurt."_

 _Bellatrix swallowed. "Second year." She told him softly, tears in her eyes. "It was just words then. He made me promise not to tell anyone. Not even Cissa."_

 _"And the… this." He waved at the potions._

 _"Third year." She answered softly. "Not this bad. Not really."_

 _"You've taken care of him?"_

 _"Always." She breathed stepping forward, "Rodolphus, I wanted to tell you, I wanted him to tell you. To tell Cissa." She started to cry silently just a few tears and he saw her start to reach a hand out to the bed, to his brother and then pull it back and wipe at the tears, "I'd promised, I tried but he made me keep the promise. He let me take care of him. We take care of each other." She gripped the few bottles of potions tighter and they clinked lightly together._

 _"I've given him everything he needs." Rodolphus sighed, "I know now and they'll pay. They'll all pay."_

 _"They have." She growled, "They do." Chin jutted high._

 _Rodolphus smirked, "You do have a rather… interesting reputation." Her eyes flickered to his brother, "You love him."_

 _"He's my best friend… my only real friend."_

 _Rodolphus nodded, "He'll sleep tonight, make sure he eats in the morning, yeah?"_

 _"Of course." She nodded._

 _"Goodnight… Miss Black"_

 _She gave a questioning frown, but nodded slightly in return and smirked, "Goodnight Mr. Lestrange."_

 _Walking back to his room rage still simmered in the back of his head and heart but amusement and hope and lightness as well. In his own dorm he found, as he'd hoped, Narcissa lounging on Lucius's bed while the man himself sat on a conjured chair, both of them reading from Advanced Transfiguration books._

 _"I'd like your approval to court Bellatrix."_

 _Lucius lifted a brow in amusement._

 _"You want to date my sister?" Narcissa sounded amused as well._

 _"I want to court her, officially." Rodolphus corrected, and then smirked, "I'm going to marry her."_

 _Lucius laughed and shook his head, "What is it about Black women that make smart boys go barmy? I swear I had my father nail a contract with Narcissa's family the moment she turned seventeen."_

 _"_ We _were dating already and my sister is sixteen,_ I _also do not recall official courtship?"_ _she lifted she brow at Lucius._

 _Lucius lifted his brow at her and smirked motioning to the ring on her finger, "Thankfully I did get that lovely contract still but if courtship is your wish my love courtship you shall have." He bowed elegantly._

 _"Courtship is what I wish." Rodolphus grumbled interrupting the lovers._

 _"Yes yes, why you need my approval, shouldn't you be asking her parents?"_

 _"You and Cissa are here and her representatives at the school." Rodolphus's voice spoke his exasperation._

 _Lucius chuckled enjoying the moment, "Don't torture him." Narcissa laughed, "Of course Rodolphus, given Bella's approval, I approve, as would our parents."_

 _"Yes, yes." Lucius agreed with the wave of his hand, "Now about this courtship my queen." He lifted his eyebrow playfully at Narcissa making her giggle._

 _Rodolphus groaned, "Now about that mudblood who attacked my brother, apparently not for the first time." He growled the last part._

 _"What!" Lucius hissed._

 _"Bella would have told me." Narcissa insisted with a frown._

 _"I would have thought my brother would, apparently not. Instead he had your sister promise to say nothing while those bastards tried to convince him to be ashamed of himself." Rodolphus growled. The three talked more and plotted revenge. In bed that night Rodolphus also plotted his courtship._

 _It was at breakfast three days later Bellatrix was faced with her first gift, her favorite flowers. No note accompanied them._

 _"Thank you Rab." He frowned at her. "For the flowers."_

 _"I didn't send you flowers."_

 _Bellatrix frowned at him, "You know my favorite flower."_

 _Rabastian shrugged, "not me Bell."_

 _The next week, her favorite candy, the next a sheet of music that played her favorite song and the next her favorite book on the fifth week a necklace with her favorite gem._

 _"I'm being courted and I want to know who!" Bellatrix stomped her foot. "You're helping him I know it!" She brandished her wand at her best friend, only you and Cissa know these things and I can't think of anyone you'd help…" Bellarix frowned, "No! It couldn't be… your brother doesn't know me from… from… from a firsty off the boats! I'm just your little friend, Cissa's baby sister!"_

 _"He knows you." Rabastian laughed. "And I only helped a little." He shrugged, "Rolph pays attention and when he's a mind." He shrugged. "Trust me, he's a mind."_

 _"Since when." She huffed and stomped her foot._

 _Rabastian shrugged his shoulder, "I'd say the train station when he saw you and told me he was going to marry the girl he saw, his face when he realized it was you was priceless. Then when you hexed Merrick in the Great Hall… he's a goner. He told me that was the same night he asked Narcissa and Lucius to court you, rage over me and all, you were forefront on his mind."_

 _Bellatrix blushed, "Six weeks, and he sent me this" She held up the expensive neckless, "Already. It's only week five, I'm sixteen, if he sends me a ring next week I'll shove it down his throat."_

 _Rabastian laughed, "He wont."_

 _"Why couldn't' he ask me on a date like a normal bloke."_

 _"Black women aren't normal." Rabastian wrapped his arm around her, "He's smart enough not to let you get away."_

 _Bella chuckled and shoved him, not hard enough to dislodge him from around her though and she wrapped the same arm around his waist a moment later and they left his dorm to go down to the common room._

 _She sent a glare to Rodolphus, "So your courting me." She demanded._

 _He grinned at her, "You figured me out then."_

 _"You're the only one Rab would help and only he and Cissa know these things about me."_

 _"Are they?" He asked back with a lifted brow._

 _She glared back, "You think you know me?"_

 _"I watch." He shrugged._

 _"Stalker." She snorted and tugged a chuckling Rabastian out of the common room._

 _"Why are you grinning?" Lucius asked his friend amused._

 _"She was wearing the necklace." Narcissa answered for him with a smile of her own. Rodolphus nodded. "So what is the final gift? And how did you know she loved Peridot?"_

 _"Her bracelet, the tiny stones are Peridot."_

 _Narcissa nodded, "Worn on her right hand to ward off bad dreams. I got it for her when I came to Hogwarts, it took all my allowances for three months to get it but she had terrible nightmares as a child. I didn't want them to come back when I was gone. She's never taken it off. Most people think they're emeralds."_

 _Rodolphus shrugged, "Peridot, set in gold and worn around the right wrist to ward off night terrors, the necklace wards off different darkness."_

 _"Dark magic." Narcissa nodded, "I don't even think she knows how expensive and rare though one can tell by looking at it, it isn't cheap."_

 _"She'll be my wife." He shrugged and stood._

 _"What's the final gift?" Narcissa hesitated, "She's too young for a ring Rodolphus."_

 _He nodded, "She'd hex me if I sent one." He chuckled and shook his head, "One day, she'll get_ the _ring."_

 _"So the sixth gift?"_

 _He shrugged and walked away, out of the common room. The next week, Thursday, the day of gifts, Bellatrix glared as breakfast came and went with no gift. She glared down the table at Rodolphus and stormed over to him, "Well?"_

 _"Miss Black?" He lifted a brow._

 _"It's Thursday."_

 _"I'm aware."_

 _"Where is it?"_

 _"What is that my dear?"_

 _"You know what!" She stomped her foot._

 _"I'm sorry, but I don't."'Her eyes shot daggers at him as she hissed and grumbled and spun on her heal to storm away, "Miss Black!" He called before she could storm off._

 _"What!" She spun back._

 _"Would you do me the honor of joining me in Hogsmede this weekend?"_

 _She frowned at him, "Hogsmede?"_

 _"Yes, Hogsmede." He nodded, and then smirked, "For a date."_

 _She gaped at him and then sucked in a breath closing her mouth before curtly nodding and spinning on her heal again to storm off to Rabastian, linking arms with him and tugging him from the great hall. "What game is your brother playing at?"_

 _"I believe, my dear, he is courting you."_

 _She huffed and turned to him, "How's things with the Lion?"_

 _"The same."_

 _"Does he know about the attacks."_

 _"Don't start Bell."_

 _She gave a frustrated grumble and somehow managed to stomp her foot as they walked, "Lions! No one attacks them. It's like they walk on water or something. How do they not know what it's really like for you, for any of you!"_

 _"They do Bell, he does. He's not blind to it, he just, he thinks that acceptance and tolerance, that showing them a better way, our way will open them to this world. Show them tolerance and that family is first. That none of that muggle hate is real or has a place in our world. Family and status are what matter here, the only things that matter here, money sure but you can't buy family lineages, status to a point but family is always first. Color and love and that it's just stupid to hate over it. A wizard is a wizard, a man is a man, excuse me or witch. Of course he also thinks half-humans are still people so he might be trying to push tolerance to far for even the families but I think we can all agree a human being is still a human being and should be treated that way and if we can just start there with them and then teach them that their whole world view is wrong because lineage might make a family have more status and others rise in status other ways but all that matters is status then we'll all be fine. Basic human rights yeah?"_

 _"Oh Rab." She sighs and puts her head on his shoulder, "If only it were so easy, hate like that, it's inside mudbloods like him, they don't belong in our world, their hate doesn't belong here, not where it can hurt you."_

 _"Not all of them are like him."_

 _"I know." She sighed and fingered the necklace._

 _"Worried about the date?"_

 _"He didn't send the sixth gift."_

 _"You aren't ready for the ring." Rabastian shrugged._

 _"He's supposed to send a sixth gift." She frowned, "It's part of official courting."_

 _"He's taking you on a date. Maybe it's the sixth gift."_

 _"I…" Bellatrix frowned, "Did you tell him to take me on a date?" She demanded._

 _Rabastian laughed and pulled away from her to hold up his hands, "Swear, I said nothing, but you did ask me why he didn't take you on a date like a normal bloke and now he is."_

 _"Exactly." She glared at him, "He was courting me and I say something to you and now, right at the final gift, nothing! He asks me on a date!"_

 _Rabastian laughs and shakes his head, "I swear, I said nothing, he asked me your favorite flower. Nothing since. Promise. And you know I'd never lie. Not to you."_

 _Bellatrix glared at him and then nodded taking his arm to continue leading him down to the lake. "Bella…"_

 _"You have a tryst." She sighed. "Go, find the damn Lion."_

 _Rabastian chuckled, "No, it's just… my brother."_

 _"Of course I like him. You know I do. He's been my secret crush since forever, being you of course I imagine you've known that since it started."_

 _Rabastian chuckled, "Maybe, but a crush and marriage."_

 _"We'll be a good match." She sent him a small smile and then smirked, "If he proves he deserves me."_

 _"Of course." Rabastian chuckled with her and then nodded, "Social?"_

 _"No." Bellatrix glared towards their fellow Slytherins._

 _"You used to like our friends Bella."_

 _"I used to trust our friends Rab."_

 _He sighed, "They would never turn on us, let me be hurt."_

 _"They do nothing but watch when you are." She hissed. "Besides, we can't pretend not to hear the rumors Rab. Things are going on outside these walls. Dark times are coming and the families want to stay out of it. We don't need trouble here like they had in Europe."_


	5. Chapter 5

"By the end of the year, Bellatrix and Rodolphus were a couple and a contract was written, he presented her with a promise ring on her seventeenth birthday." Rabastian chuckled, "She refused to agree to a proposal while we were in Hogwarts, no engagement. He had to wait a whole nother year."

"So you… you're…"

"Homosexual?" Rabastian lifted his brow at the tired girl.

Hermione blushed, "I'm not… I don't care or anything… just surprised."

Rabastian nodded, "By that or my Hogwarts affair?"

"Both." Hermione admitted.

"No one ever knew." He sighed, and looked at the dying embers of the fire, "It's late."

"You loved him."

"I couldn't… We'd lost you. He promised our revenge but I wanted to kill Dolohov when I learned about… he protected that witch and still… I grieved him. Even in her grief, in our rage and pain Bella was there for me. It was the woman, the friend she was. Protecting that witch, I know she'd have tortured him to find her, to kill her, but she'd have tried to make him understand, we would have made him understand. She wouldn't have… She'd never have… He and Gid would have understood, I know they would, if only we could have talked to them. If he hadn't sent Dolohov. It was our revenge. We got her but it should have been us. Fab and I, we'd ended things during seventh year, for real ended it but… there was always… yes, I loved him. We had a few more… moments… I always loved him."

"I'm sorry."

"It's late. I promised Narcissa you'd get your rest."

"What happened to the necklace?"

Rabastan shrugged, "Ministry, during the arrest, they took it and the bracelet. She'd be better with them. The protections. They'd protect her from her own mind, from the nightmares, the madness. In the attack on the ministry… we couldn't find them." He looked pained. "We weren't given time to look properly."

Hermione nodded and rose to follow him, exhausted. The room was beautiful, the bed lush and the sheets soft her lids were heavy and though her mind raced her lids closed and she fell deeply asleep before Rabastan quietly closed the door on his sleeping niece.

As the sun rose Rodolphus slipped into the room to find his wife sitting in the corner of the room staring at the sleeping girl, wild brown curls strewn across her pillow. He cast a silencing spell, "You alright Bella?"

"No." She shook her head.

"You need to sleep my love."

"My daughter." Her lip quivered but her eyes were hard even with a layer of tears. "My baby." She looked delicate and broken but fierce and wild. He wanted to wrap her in his arms and protect her but knew he couldn't, she was a fine tether and would snap at any moment. His beautiful broken wife. "He did this. We lost her." He could hear her hatred in her voice, for the dark lord and for him, for failing her, for failing their daughter, for not protecting his family.

"We have her back."

"We'll never have her back." Bellatrix hissed. "They stole her, every moment. From her first step, first food, first like and dislike, first wound, her first accidental magic, her first time on the train, her first spell, her first friend, her first heart ache, her first kiss, her first anything and everything. They stole it all and now she isn't ours. We are Death Eaters. Escaped from Azkaban. People she has been taught to loathe, to fear. My daughter is gone. He took stole and they raised her into a beautiful strong woman, but we can never get her back." Bella started to shake. He stole my baby. She's alive. Look at her. So beautiful. After yesterday… most would be shattered… she's sleeping, so peaceful, so beautiful, so strong." Bellatrix's face turned soft. "My daughter."

"He'll pay."

"Yes." She hissed. "He will."

"My love." He almost pleaded gently. "I will make him pay."

She turned to look at him, "I believed him." Her voice sounded so broken. She had been so taken in by his lies, so angry in her grief she had become zealous in her loyalty to the cause. "What they did to Rab, what they did to my baby. I wanted to kill them all." She turned to gaze back at the girl, "But it was him, all the time it was him."

"We'll get him Bella, he'll suffer."

"I want him dead Rolph. I want him dead and I want her back. I want her to know. To fix what he did, what I did and I can't. I can't get her back."

"We will. She's alive and we'll get her back." Rodophus moved closer to his wife, "She's our daughter, we can't make right all our mistakes Bella but we'll avenge what he took from us and if nothing else, try to make her understand. Show her we love her, that family is everything."

"I can't go back Rolph, I can't go back there." She began to shake, "Every day I lived the day I lost her. Remembered the moment I went into the nursery, that feeling, that sick feeling." She she gripped him painfully the anger and raw pain in her voice tinged with hate for the Dark Lord.

"She's alive Bella, she's here. You never have to live that moment again."

"I did everything he asked. I was his most loyal." Rage was filling her, madness with it. Rodolphus rubbed her back trying to soothe her.

"I should have protect her, protected you both."

"Yes." She agreed and slumped into his arms. "We should have protected her, and we should have known. Should have seen through him. Found her."

Rodophus led her from the girls room and back to their own as the sun rose in the sky and sounds stirred in the house signaling the waking of the other occupants.

Lucius had returned late in the night but as usual was up early waking his wife. "Sleep more Cissa."

"I can't." She smiled weakly at him, "I'll check on her." She glanced questioningly at him.

"Severus was surprised, very." He sighed.

"He's agreed?" It was partly rhetorical, she had faith in the younger man.

Lucius nodded, "Loyalty to our family isn't the only reason he made the pact with you."

"Oh?" Narcissa frowned.

"Apparently the Headmaster had some idea of Draco's orders and gave him instructions to do it for Draco as well." Lucius sighed and smirked, "He never believed Draco dark enough to do it himself."

Narcissa nodded and smiled softly before frowning and looking up, "Bella was right then? He was always a spy?"

"Since the loss of Lily." Lucius nodded. "The Order is not aware of his orders to kill Dumbledore who was already at deaths door due to his trying on the Horcrux cursed ring. At any rate he is more than on board with helping us and only wishes he'd been able to identify Cassie years ago. Now that he knows, he's cursing himself and was muttering about her hair."

Narcissa smiled fondly, "It was always rather wild, more so now but even back then, she left the curls riotous and wild like she was, too much work and bother to wrangle she always said."

Lucious nodded, "Cassie is rather the same, not fussed with messing with it or so our old friend says and the few times I've come across her would imply."

"So Severus will watch out for Draco." She nodded absently.

"He's expected at the gate this morning." Lucius nodded, "And will be put in classes accordingly. I'll contact our friends today."

"I can help."

"You're needed here."

"Cassie."

"Yes." Lucius nodded. "And your sister."

"Rolph will take her after that cup in the vault today." Lucius nodded. "Rabastian and she were talking late last night."

"How is he?"

"They all seem… ok." Narcissa offered.

"Do they? Are you?"

"I don't know." She shrugged looking away.

"Cissa."

"I almost lost him. I almost lost Draco when she went missing, when she…"

"She didn't die."

"No, but I lost others and I almost lost him and she was stolen. I don't know if we've been ok in a long time… if we'll ever be ok… or if they will."

"They're strong Cissa."

"What we've done, to ourselves, to our family, to them. You heard our son. I almost lost him when they stole her and instead I stole, we stole his childhood from him. They stole hers from us and we stole his from him." She sobbed and looked away. "Family and status… there's no family Lucius… he tore it from us, broke us all and we helped him. Our babies, our babies are the ones to suffer and we've lost them, lost everything and I don't know if anything can ever really be ok."

Lucius rose and pulled his wife into his arms, "It will be, somehow, it will be. I promise. I will rebuild this family Cissa, and Cassie's, she will know the meaning of her family, what it was, what it should have been. She will learn to have pride in who she is, in her lineage, as a Black and a Lestrange and our son, he will be a proud Black and Malfoy. They will know their lineages and be proud of them, proud of their family and one day we'll heal the wounds, start again be a real family."

"They'll never have it back. We'll never have it back."

"No, but we'll avenge it and have a better tomorrow, I promise you, they will have a better future and they will continue our families with pride."

Narcissa visibly pulled herself together and rose, they readied for the day in quiet and moved through the hosue to the kitchen where tea was waiting.

The quiet was marred by the quiet foot steps as Hermione padded into the room, "Uh, sorry."

"Please, join us, have some tea." Narcissa motioned to the table and waved her wand, a tea cup floating over and filling.

"Are there house elves here?"

"One." Narcissa nodded, "Bella's old elf, Doxy."

At her name the little elf popped in. "Yes mistress? Did you need something? Did I do wrong?" The elf responded nervously, not used to being called into the presence of the houses occupants.

"Nothing." Narcissa waved her off, "We have everything we need, job well done, as usual."

"Thank you mistress."

"This is your young Mistress Cassiopia."

"Yes mistress. Doxy is knowing. Doxy is cleaning her clothes and patching the holes while she is sleeping but no others for Doxy to put away and no night clothes. Doxy put out clean underthingys but they aren't the young Mistresses. I's took them from when Mistress Bella was young."

"Run her a bath for after breakfast and arrange for new clothes and night clothes."

"Doxy did Mistress. It's to be warm for her."

"Well done then." Narcissa nodded at her and gave a slight dismissive wave. The little elf seemed to sigh in relief and popped away.

"Thank you!" Hermione called after her.

Narcissa frowned at the girl, "A job well done is thanks Cassie."

"She deserves to be treated well." Hermione lifted her chin and the corner of Narcissa's mouth quirked.

"That look…" Narcissa sighed, "It's very much your mother." Sadness reached her eyes as she looked away, "as she was."

"There is breakfast on the sideboard." Lucius nodded to the large piece of furniture and after a moment Hermione rose and moved over to find eggs, rashers of bacon, fruit, fresh biscuits, yoghurt and two kinds of juice. Making a plate and taking some grapefruit juice she sat down and ate hungrily, it had been months since she'd had a good meal and here she was, two in less than twelve hours.

"You look so thin." Narcissa sighed.

"Meals on the run." Hermione shrugged. Narcissa nodded and poured her more tea.

"Were you hurt… much."

"I'm alright." She ate in quiet while the two elders sipped their tea and watched as she politely, though clearly hungrily, ate her meal.

A week passed, the presence of the Horcrux in the house did not help Bellatrix and Hermione saw her little, which meant she saw little of Rodolphus. Lucius was busy with his plans and plots. Narcissa and Rabastian were always around, often quiet but supportive. One night she woke and saw Bellatrix in the chair in the corner of her room, just watching her. She drifted to sleep and only woke when she heard the door open and Rodolphus move towards his wife. They both seemed only to watch her in the predawn light and when she woke a little later for her day, they were gone. Breakfast with Narcissa and Lucius, then he'd be off for the day and around noon Rabastian would appear. Narcissa was around, gently offering her clothes, books, comments about Bellatrix and tea, always tea. Rabastian, he talked to her. Stories about Hogwarts, about her mother, her father in their youth, his affair with Fabian, Quidditch. Everything until her birth… nothing after. He closed off. Pain and darkness in his eyes as soon as he though of the infant she was. He focused on younger years, happier years. Their families. All afternoon and into the night he talked to her or worked spells with her. Then left her for the night with books to read herself to sleep and her morning until lunch.

Then the day came and Hermione stood, in front of them, in front of the others, in the middle. "Stop! Please! Listen!"

"STOP!" Harry yelled running to stand by her.

"You were supposed to leave." She glared at him.

"We've been researching where to go." He glared back. "You know _not_ rush off into danger and do something stupid without you."

"Well I did bring you a present."

"A Death Eater or five?" Ron snorted walking forward.

"Counting not your strong suit?" Lucius asked with a lifted brow.

"Stop it!" Hermione demanded with a stomp of her foot, "And they aren't Death Eaters… anymore."

"I was never a Death Eater." A woman's voice spoke up.

"Right, well, my… family were. And it doesn't matter… none of you are now!" Hermione glared at the group and turned back to her friends and allies, "Which is the point, they're here to help."

"So you brought me allies?" Harry questioned, "I mean you told me about them…" Harry frowned, "Sort of… I guess you rallied a lot more than I expected. Thought it was just the… uh… well… your…"

"Family?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Weird that." Ron shook his head. "I still think it's a blimy trick."

"It isn't." Hermione sighed.

"I know." Harry reached out and took her hand.

"You alright?" Hermione asked gently. Harry nodded, his own eyes questioning so she nodded back, "Ron?"

"Huh?"

"You ok?" She chuckled.

"Me? Yeah, fine, I've been here safe with Bill. You're the one been all imprisoned."

Hermione rolled her eyes, "I was in a safe house. I sent word to Harry didn't I?"

"Yeah but well…"

"Honestly." She huffed.

"Miss Grang…"

"Do not call my daughter…" Rodophus cut off his wife's rage with a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Um, yeah, so my name is apparently Cassie. Well Cassiopeia. Lestrange, obviously." She turned to look pleadingly at Bellatrix, "Which is going to be hard for some people to get used to, so you're just going to have to give it a little time, ok, but they know or will know. So it'll be ok. Just, try to… be patient with people, it isn't their fault and my par… the muggles who raised me, they really were good people."

Bellatrix swallowed but nodded, breathing heavy and gripping Rabastian's hand painfully with one hand while reaching up to hold her husbands that still gripped her arm gently.

"Right so, back on track." Lucius stepped forward, "The, how did you put it?" Lucius glanced at his niece in amusement, "present?"

"Right." Hermione grinned at him before turning back to Harry.

"Bellatrix had a Horcrux in her vault, that's why she went so mad when she saw the sword. The cup of Hufflepuff." She told him excitedly. "And now we have it!"

Harry hugged her tightly and then pulled back and frowned, "Well, we sort of lost the sword, or it disappeared anyways so we can't destroy it exactly but we have it so step one right?"

She chuckled and nodded, "Step one, right and step two, well step one on another Horcrux or a lead anyways."

"Really? Is it the school? We are pretty sure the Diadem is at the school, we're plotting to get inside and look."

"Draco is." Hermione nodded.

"So we go too." Harry nodded.

"Hello! Are we seriously just trusting them!" Ron waved at the group, "ALL of them!"

"Yes." Hermione nodded.

"Yeah." Harry shrugged. "Well, I mean, the ferret?" Harry questioned Hermione.

"Yes Harry." She huffed at him angrily.

"Fine." He sighed resignedly and muttered "He's still a ferrety git." Under his breath.

Hermione chuckled and shook her head tugging his arm through hers, "Do you have my bag? We'll need to pack it with some essentials, I imagine you've made a muck of things."

They left the others standing rather awkwardly outside the house as Ron trudged in with them griping about research and how glad he was she was back to do it again, while talking up their efforts in her absence and putting in digs at the Slytherins she'd been with all the while.

Inside he continued to blather while Harry sat out of the way and Hermione deftly moved about and flicked her wand and gathered everything she wanted, rummaging through books, papers and then all their respective belongings making Ron protest and blush but quickly quiet at her glare and sit fuming and red only to start a game of wizards chess with Harry after a quick comment about her typical barmyness. Things back to their normal routine rather immediately. Harry just shook his head and smile over at her again before focusing on the game at hand. It wouldn't be long before she was ready but he had a feeling they wouldn't be off before nightfall, it would be safer for him if they travelled then, and she always wanted to move when it was safer for him. Even if they needed to get that Horcrux sooner than later and he wanted to leave now.


	6. Chapter 6

It was dusk when they left. The safest time Hermione felt for Harry to travel. Lucius warned the floo to the Headmasters office might be monitored, they couldn't go that way. Hogsmede was being monitored as well.

"Apparate into the Dark forrest." He advised. "It will be dangerous."

"We've managed before." Hermione nodded.

"Blimey." Ron looked ill but nodded as well.

"I'll accompany you." Rabastian offered.

"Better he doesn't discover you, tear down his ranks from inside." Remus shook his head. "That was the plan."

"My niece" Rabastian began angrily.

"Is very loved." Remus interrupted him gently, "By many."

"You nearly killed her. Severus told me." Lucius spat. "The full moon."

"Enough." Hermione hissed. "I am not a child and I won't be treated like one. I've been fighting this war a long time."

"We can't lose you again." Rodolphus gazed painfully at his daughter.

Hermione looked back, pain for their loss and determination in her eyes, "I stand by my brother until the end. You want to help me, to save me, stick to the plan. Make him pay. End the war." Hermione rose and turned to Harry, "We need to go." She looked back, "We'll get to the school safely." She looked to Bellatrix, "Rabastian says I have your stubborn pride and strength of will, your determination. So decide we'll win, decide it and we will. Then when it's over, I'll find your necklace, you'll be ok again. We all will. We'll go home."" Hermione turned to Rabastian and nodded, "I'll see you soon, I promise… uncle."

He nodded back with a small quirk to his lip. "I will see you soon niece and you will have a bracelet to match the one Cissa got your Aunt so many years ago."

"We'll all need one, to chase away the nightmares."

"The nightmare will be over, just the ghost of memories left to die." He contradicted, "but I'll always protect you, I promise little goddaughter and I won't fail you again."

Hermione nodded and wiped at the tears, "You never did, not me or my mother or _him_. None of you failed me and now you know the truth, you've proven that because you're here, fighting him, for me."

"We did fail you daughter, I failed you and Rabastian and your mother. It was my job to protect you, all of you. My family and I didn't, not back then but I will die before I fail any of again before I let anyone get away with hurting you."

Hermione sucked in a breath but closed her mouth again, there was nothing she could say. Rabastian was his baby brother. Bellatrix his wife. She was his daughter and she'd been taken. They'd been broken. Family was everything and his had been broken. There was nothing she could say to convince him that he couldn't have protected them. She shook her head. "We'll all be ok. After. I'll find the necklace." She swiped at the tears angrily.

"I'll have a new one made." Rodolphus told her gently. "Find a new gem."

Hermione nodded, "We'll be ok."

"We'll all be ok." Narcissa nodded taking her husbands hand as she agreed with her niece in hope.

Rodolphus nodded as he felt Bellatrix gripping his arm painfully. "Yes." He agreed, "When it's over."

Hermione sniffed and turned grabbing Harry and Ron's arms, "Come on boys, you heard Lucius, the Forbidden Forest."

Sneaking onto school grounds was easier than they thought with no problems in the forest but they had no idea how to get in the school when the passages they knew of turned up blocked. It was nearing dawn and they couldn't risk being seen.

"We should hide under the whomping willow for the day. Get some sleep, try again tomorrow." Ron complained again.

"We need to get inside." Harry growled frustrated.

Ron sighed, "How?"

"Maybe I can accio a broom and fly up to the tower?" Harry suggested again.

"You'll be seen." Hermione told him for the tenth time.

"Let's magic the ruble away in the corridor and…"

"We'll be heard." Hermione sighed.

"Let's just go sleep, we'll sneak in with the students in the morning." Ron grumbled.

"Honestly!" Hermione growled.

"Well what have you come up with oh brilliant one! That's right you haven't, not one idea!" Ron snapped back.

"Well, she could secretly message her cousin?" Came a quiet voice… "Oh wait… she did…" The arrogance floated off the rumpled figure as he leaned casually against the wall.

"Malfoy!" Hermione gasped. "You got it!"

"Took a bit to sneak off or I'd been round sooner." He stood up, "Amusing as the bickering is, shall we…" He motioned towards the castle, "Patrol is off for the night but morning rounds will start soon." He led them inside and through the halls to a portrait, "can you tell one of them this lot is here?" He turned back, "My change of heart isn't exactly… trusted… at all . No password. I only know where this is by… well… neutral parties who aren't shall we say quite so neutral feeling now they know what happened. I have gathered my side as bidden but there is no… reciprocation between forces." He waved at the door. "Your people hid out in there." We… well if you need me… be careful, I am not a known traitor, yet. Word is Order rescued prisoners at our house, and my parents are… missing. Bellatrix was last seen at her vault checking on the sword of Gryffindor which Snatchers came to my parents house claiming to have with their prisoners. My uncles sent me here and are tracking down the people responsible with crazy aunt Bella who still has the sword in her vault. All of us still playing good loyal dogs." Draco hissed.

Hermione reached out and gripped his hand until he looked at her, "It'll be over soon." She gave a grim smile, "We'll be free soon. All of us. We'll be ok soon."

"It'll never be ok Granger. What they took, from us, from our family. From our world. None of this will ever be ok, none of us."

"We'll be free, we'll be ok, our future, we'll have that, all of us, together." Tears swam in her eyes, she had to believe, to hold onto it. So much, everything had changed, she felt like she was free falling, spinning through the universe, coming apart at the seams with nothing to hold her together.

Draco squeezed her hand back, "Yeah, we'll be free." The way he said it, the disillusionment in his voice instead of hope, a tear broke free and down her cheek. Shock ran a shiver down her spine when his finger, so gentle, lifted and wiped it away, his voice was soft and gentle now too, "It'll be ok Cassie, one day, you're right, we will be ok, our family, we will make it ok, you and me, ok?" Hermione nodded as another tear fell and she felt him wipe it away. "I have to go." She nodded. "They're coming." She nodded and he dropped his hand from her face and squeezed her hand. She heard the edge return to his voice, the coldness, the emptiness. "Take care of my cousin Potter."

Hermione sniffed as she heard his footsteps and turned to Harry and Ron. Harry linked an arm with hers, worry in his eyes. Ron looked at once dumbfounded and angry but before he could say anything the portrait swung open slowly and a head peaked out. Neville.

"Neville." Harry smiled.

"Harry!" Neville whisper exclaimed and stepped forward pulling him into a hug and then Hermione followed by Ron, pulling each in turn into the passage and closing the portrait. "This way." He led them inside. The room was just beginning to stir but with whispers of his name becoming calls and shouts people quickly roused.

They explained their mission and it was Luna who seemed, in her airy ways to have a clue. The takeover of the school was swift, by noon Severus the Death Eater teachers had been expelled, Severus handed his post to the Deputy Headmistress, who was informed of his real allegiance, and offered proof, including his real involvement in Dumbledore's death. By evening they had both Horcux's but not a way to destroy them.

"Fiendfyre." Minerva sighed. "It would be very dangerous though. We'd need to find a way to contain it."

"Is there a way to contain it?" Severus frowned, "So as not to endanger the students? Or the castor?"

"Oh Severus." She gazed fondly at him, "How did I doubt you?" Dampness filled her eyes as regret filled her features.

"I gave a great many reasons." He offered ducking his head.

"You played a good spy."

"A great spy." Harry snorted.

"I was at a time, not." Severus reminded them

"He was very manipulative." Hermione offered gently, "Look at my family."

Severus nodded curtly, "I am… very sorry." At her frown he looked away and back, "I ought to have… seen or tested or…"

"No one could have known."

"That hair." He snorted.

Hermione let out a sound between a sob and a chuckle. "So I've heard."

"So… um… fiendfyre?" Harry interrupted.

"It's uncontrollable." Hermione frowned and glanced back at her mentor, "Isn't it Professor?"

"Well… yes." Minerva agreed, "And no." She sighed, "We might be able to snuff it out before it gets too out of control, the damage it does will still be great and it's path uncontrollable and destructive. It will be dangerous, we just need to… control where it is started and how long it burns and where it is allowed to go."

"Wonderful." Severus snorted, "Control fiendfyre."

"Where?" Hermione frowned.

Minerva sighed, "I'm not sure."

"The Dark Lords slimy snake arse?" Severus grumbled.

"Severus!" Minerva gasped while the teens giggled.

"The shrieking shack?" Harry suggested.

"Not secure enough and too close to town and Hogwarts." Severus glared.

"Hogwarts is the most secure, perhaps it should be here." Minerva contradicted.

"With the students! Are you mad!" Severus growled.

"Says the man who brought in Death Eaters." She snapped at him.

"I did everything in my power to protect them!"

"Then you should never have brought them here! You and Albus went about your plots and plans and now we have a mess to clean up! A war to fight on _together_ because it is about time you confided in me Severus Snape! Because we are without him since he went and thought he should do things on his own got himself in trouble! And like it or not we have students not just to protect but students fighting in it and he put them on the front lines! Against my very protests! This school is the most secure place and if we are going about messing with something like fiendfyre the best place to protect those students _all_ those students is here! You and I and all of us are in this together, do you understand me! We are going to face it together, as a team, as the family we are here!"

"Yes ma'am." Severus looked thoroughly chastened and at the same time pleased.

"Now." She huffed, "Where is the question."

"Where we found the diadem." Harry spoke up quietly.

"The room of found things?" Hermione frowned at him.

"The room of requirement." Harry nodded.

"Right." Hermione nodded and grinned. "It can provide us a room we need."

"Excellent." Minerva nodded. "Tonight, the students sleep in the Great Hall. If evacuation is required…"

Severus nodded. "They can be informed at the feast. We'll conduct the… destruction of the… artifacts after curfew." He looked at the three teens sitting in the group of teachers, "The three of you, the artifacts, they… are you alright with them until this evening?"

"Yes." Harry nodded.

"Why wouldn't we be!" Ron demanded.

"Ronald." Hermione snapped at him. "Yes Professor." She nodded, "They're, affecting us." She glared at Ron, "But we'll be fine. We learned from the locket and take turns. Also, we don't have to wear these ones directly but they are safe."

He nodded, "We will see you tonight then."

"Give it over Ron." Harry motioned to the boys bag as they left the room.

"I don't have it." Ron spat.

"I do." Hermione sighed, hefting her bag over her shoulder.

Harry frowned and shook his head at his red headed friend. "Draco still have the cup?"

"Yeah, I'll get it back at supper. Will you hold it? I shouldn't carry both."

"Of course you shouldn't. Let me take the diadem now. You've had it long enough. Take a break."

"Thanks Harry." She sighed and handed the diadem to him from her bag before they moved out of the gargoyle into the school. It would give her an hour of reprieve from its direct darkness before she took the cup from Draco and supper.

"I can take a turn." Ron kicked at the dirt as they went outside.

"Yeah." Harry nodded but didn't move to give the object to his ill-tempered friend.

Severus had watched the exchange as the teens left and shook his head with exasperation.

"Don't Severus." Minerva placed her hand on his arm gently.

"That boy." He seethed.

"Is bad tempered, poorly behaved and undeserving of her. We are all quite aware." Minerva finished for him to several nods. He gaped at them. "Youth." She shrugged with a small smile.

"You'd let her throw away her life on him?" He glared at her, "Before she was Cassie she deserved better!" He snarled.

"She was always Cassie, Severus."

"And she always deserved better."

"He's not a bad boy."

"He doesn't treat her well."

"He's only a boy."

"He has no respect for family. The way he disregards his own brothers." Severus was surprised to hear Filius Flitwick and Pomona Sprout agree with him.

"It can't be easy having so very many." Aurora Sinistra tried then frowned, "Though you'd think he'd be proud, "I am very proud of my sisters but I have only three."

"I had nine siblings, proud of every one of em." Professor Binns spoke up. "As the youngest I got the best of everything my brothers had, got away with everything they never did, got all their favorite things growing up, learned all their best hiding places and tricks, the best and most presents even though we didn't have much. Being a sibling is the best. It's them with none have the hardest and parents know it. Family is everything. All history teaches that. Everything we lose in war. We lose family." He looked sad. "Miss mine, war stole them. Teaching is the closest to family you get. Teaching, Hogwarts. Been my family since… since I finished school after I lost my family so long ago…" Binns frowned… "So long ago." He drifted off lost in thought.

"So you _all_ agree?" Severus gaped.

"They're young Severus." Minerva sighed, "It's a crush."

"Lucius crushed on Narcissa and Rodolphus crushed on Bellatrix. Hell that Ned crushed on Andromedia! Men don't just crush on Black women! AND BLACK WOMEN DON'T JUST CRUSH!" He roared. "I was there! I know!" He pointed at her "You'll see! This should be nipped, cut off! She'll be ruined! Held back! Miserable! He's an oaf! Self serving! He'll never change! Never grow up! And Cassie will suffer" He hurumphed, "If Rabastian doesn't just kill the boy."

"Oh Severus." Minerva chuckled. He slumped into his seat as the others held in smirks and chuckles. He just sat glaring darkly at them.


	7. Chapter 7

The moment the Horcrux's were destroyed Voldemort felt it. Rage filled him and he called his Death Eaters to him to plan the attack on the school. The final battle would happen the next night. Unknown to him, those in his circle against him wore a red band on their right arm, magically hidden, that would appear in battle. Those who had not previously chosen a side arrived at the school in time for lunch, most to help the younger years escape, some stayed to fight and a few came back once the kids were safe.

People died. Too many people. On both sides. Neville got the snake but it wasn't the last Horcrux. Harry was. Voldemort had been surprised by the defection of his core members. By Bellatrix's rage. His most loyal servant. The battle raged as he looked for Harry but his side turned on each other. He knew of Severus's treachery but Lucius protected his son's godfather. The Professors protected their colleague, the man who'd killed Dumbledore. Nothing was going according to his plan and Neville killed his snake. Saved them as it was blasted away and rose to attack again by cutting off it's head with the sword of Gryffindor.

Fred shoved his brother away from the wall as he saw it crumble. "FAB!" Rabastian shouted casting furiously, killing the Death Eater and trying to blast the rocks away, running, running and shoving into both boys hard.

Rodolphus roared, running, it took only a glance to see the glassy eyes of his baby brother, the pain ripping through him. He looked over and saw a man had run up, "Gid… uh…"

"George." The boy said breathing heavily.

"George," He glanced at the other, the one his brother saved, the two… brothers, one identical to the other, one clearly their brother…

"Fred." He said and motioned to his brother, "Percy."

Rodolphus nodded shooting off a spell, breathing heavy and glancing painfully at his brother, he heard a rage filled scream, Bella. "Stay low. Cast hard. Dark. They aim to kill. Be careful. Stay alive. And together. Watch your backs. Closer to the castle." He glanced at his brother again. "Have you seen Cassie? My daughter?" They shook their heads, "Stay low. Stay alive. Bill was that way." He waved to the last place he saw who had to be their brother. He moved over and saw Dolohov. He spat on the body. If anything, at least his brother had that. The man who'd killed Fabian. In the end. Angrily he sniffed and ran in the direction he'd heard Bellatrix.

He never made it to her. Never saw her again. Fenrir Greyback got him in the back as he leapt in front of another woman. Remus watched helpless as the werewolf went for Nymphadora and then Rodolphus was there in front of her, hugging her. Guarding her. With a pain filled grunt he shielded her as the wolf raged and clawed into him.

"Home to your son." He whispered in her ear as he shoved her away and spun casting at the wolf with the last of his strength. Remus shot a spell, hoping not to hit his ally.

Running for them, "No!" He cried tripping, he missed a killing curse. Aiming for the wolf he hit him again but the Death Eater had killed him, his last act. Nymphadora leant over him and closed his eyes, touching his shoulder gently in thanks, for what he had done.

She and Remus made their way to each other and gripped hands, wishing they could embrace but needing to be aware, to keep fighting.

Bellatrix raged and attacked him, she never held a chance though, her death was swift. A flick of his wand. A killing curse. She was dead moments after Rodophus had heard her angry scream. Taken in her madness to attack him. He'd let her cast a few angry spells and then… it was over. So fast. A lifeless body. A mother who'd suffered so many years finally free from the madness he'd thrown her in.

Forces retreated and Harry met him in the woods. The last Horcrux. Narcissa helped Poppy with the wounded and they carried in the corpses. Hermione thought she was numb as she stood over her parents but her heart felt like it shattered as she stood over her uncle The hours they'd talked. He'd given her who her parents had been, who her family should have been. It had been so short a time but those hours, those hours he'd given her every memory… all the pieces, all the memories of himself and all the memories of her parents. Now Voldemort had stolen her family from her… again. He stole her past and her future. They wouldn't have their chance at ok.

She felt a cool hand in hers and looked over to see Draco and wondered for a minute why she didn't cry. She felt the tears but the didn't come. Perhaps if they did she'd never stop. She felt numb and yet so very broken.

"It's not over." He told her. She nodded.

When Hagrid carried Harry, dead and Neville claimed they could still fight and win, there were more forces wounded than standing both depleted but more on theirs than his, more people, less hope. There was however, one more betrayer in his crowd. One more person who'd had enough and the not so dead Harry sprung up, the savior. Their hope.

He spun on Alecto Carrow, "Traitor!"

"You're the filthy half-blood playing at being god!" Amycus roared.

"It's sick people like you and you blood lines who turn on what we are, on the families! Bringing your hate to our world destroying our families! What happened to Amycus!" Alecto raged.

He raised his wand and cast the killing curse but Amycus knocked his sister away. "NO!" Alecto raged. Covering him with her body on the ground. It was too late. Harry challenged Voldemort and the duel was on.

When it was over, there was relief and disbelief, joy and also pervading sadness. So many losses and so many injured.

In the aftermath Alecto was all but forgotten… Hermione saw her, still crouched over her twin.

"I'm sorry."

Alecto stiffened and glared over at her then gave a calculating look, like she was trying to figure the girl out, "Are you really Cassiopia?"

"Yes."

"Bellatrix…"

Hermione looked away, "Neither of them."

"Rab?"

Hermione shook her head.

"Am…" She sighed softly.

"Rabastian told me, what it was like for him, a little. He didn't like to talk about… bad things." Hermione sighed. "He wanted to tell me happy stories. What my mother was like. What their friendship was like. Him and my father when they were boys."

"His relationship with…"

"Yes." Hermione nodded.

Alecto nodded, "Amycus, he didn't have…" She sniffed, "He deserved a…"

"Kids can be cruel."

"It never was like that… not before… witches and wizards… all through history. You know there was never a word before. I had to look up _heterosexual_ sex is just sex, love it's just love. It was." She looked away and back at her brother. "There was never anything _wrong_ with him."

"No, there wasn't."

"Muggles brought that here." She glared at Hermione. "Muggles brought hate like that here." She hissed.

Hermione nodded, "But hating someone for their parent and hating some one for who they love, its just as pointless. It's not their fault. We're all people, all witches Alecto. He didn't deserve it, I never deserved it, no one does.

"I do hate them though. I hate them all. I hate them." She looked back at Hermione tears burning in her eyes, "And now I don't even have my brother. I hate them more. What they did to him. How they've taken him from me. None of this would have happened. I hate them all. Muggles and Mudbloods, they should all burn, them and all their hate. Bring them the death and war they deserve for destroying our families."

Hermione sadly shook her head and turned to walk away from the broken woman, leaving her to grieve.

"Not everyone can be saved." Lucius offered as he moved to walk beside her from a few feet away.

"You know what happened to him?"

"After we found out about Rab in school, yeah we looked into the other students in our house tried to look out for them. I graduated that year though and Rab didn't talk about senior year, not to me and Rolph." He shrugged, "If the brothers talked it was between them. I do know that sometime, when we were all there with Amycus, there had been an incident, a bad one. Kids can be cruel. He joined the Dark Lord long before we did. Alecto with him. They never got over Hogwarts and the anger. They never got over what happened to him and only they and the perpetrators know the details."

"What happens now?"

"We rebuild. Many of us will face the courts again. Even changing sides we will have to face judgement for prior actions."

Hermione frowned at him, "No doubt with you in our corner niece all will turn out fine." HE smiled at her, "Then, we rebuild." His smile turned sad, gentle. "I promised your aunt, and perhaps in a way your parents that I would rebuild our families. You are the last Lestrange Cassie, one of the last Blacks. One day I hope take pride in that, in who your parents were, who you should have been together. Somehow, we'll all be ok, like you said."

"I'd meant together." She told him looking at her feet.

"Family is always together Cassie. I'd like to teach you that. Narcissa and I, if you'll let us."

Hermione nodded slowly, "She'd have wanted that." She looked up at him questioningly, "Wouldn't she?"

"Yes." He nodded, "The Bella of old, would have wanted Narcissa to care for you. Rabastian was your God Father but Narcissa was always meant to act as next to him, a God Mother."

She felt the tears well up and sucked in a breath, they still didn't fall, "He's not supposed to be gone."

"No." Lucius agreed. "They aren't."

Back inside the castle Harry immediately came to her side and took her arm, with a small nod Lucius immediately took his leave, a suspicious glare from Ron following his wake which Hermione and Harry both ignored.

"Come with me?" Harry whispered. Hermione nodded and the trio went outside. Ron was aghast that Harry broke the elder wand but Hermione was proud and hugged him tightly. Ron was even more aghast, and proceeded to lecture and rant when she informed them she was going to live with the Malfoy's for a bit.

Harry just stared at her a while and then slowly nodded, speaking quietly through Ron's protests. "You always have a home with me Mione."

"I know." She hugged him tightly. "I'm always here for you too."

"Home with you! Are you mad! She can't go!" Ron continued to rage.

"And just who is going to stop me?" Hermione sent him a cold glare, finally done with his rant.

"Hermione you just can't!"

"Come off Ron." Harry rolled his eyes. "They're her family."

"We're her family! They are slimy Slytherin gits! And evil! And dark! And Death Eaters!"

"They were on our side even if they are Slytherin gits and they are her family and she's decided." Harry told him.

"No! She can't go!"

"Enough! I am going Ronald Weasley and you don't get a say. Stop being a git. They are my family whether you like it or not and I will get to know them and what they know about my parents."

"That they were murderous Death Eaters! There you know!"

Hermione pulled out her wand and held it up, "Be careful Ronald, we have been friends a long long time. Do not end that today. After everything." She hissed before spinning on her heal and storming away.

Ronald spun on his other friend mouth agape waving a hand after her, "Can you bel…" He started looking for support but his friends face was hard.

"After everything we've been through, after everything today. She lost them all today Ron. So yes I can believe. I can more than believe." He turned on his friend and walked away.

Ron huffed and stormed after him quickly catching up and huffing under his breath, "I'm just worried about her." Harry made no response and the boys returned to the castle in silence.

The Malfoys were just as surprised when she announced to them she was moving in.

"That is alright?"

"Of course." Narcissa responded quickly, tears in her eyes.

"Only right you do." Lucius nodded with a quirk to the corner of his mouth Hermione thought might be the trace of pride and perhaps relief.

Draco nodded and held out his arm for her to take. Hermione hestitated only a moment before taking it. "Things are going to change cousin." He whispered.

"They already did." She whispered back. Exhausted as she dropped her head on his shoulder and looked across at Harry giving him a small sad smile. "Completely." She felt the tug of apparition and found herself in a parlour, guessing it was the Manor.

"Meli." Narcissa called, a little elf popping into their presence immediately and trembling, the elves were not called into the presence of the masters often, not unless something bad had been done. "Fetch Doxy from my sisters safe house." Her voice wavered, "Tell her, Cassie is her Mistress now."

"Yes Mistress." The elf nodded, ears low. The little elf would have felt it but not know to come here, she'd stay and wait for Cassie to arrive or care for the safe house alone all her days if no one came.

"Have her bring Cassie's things from there."

"Yes Mistress." The elf nodded and Narcissa gave a small wave dismissing her.

"I don't need a house elf." Hermione protested.

"Doxy passed to you, she'll wait there alone." Narcissa shook her head, "It's not a good life for them. "They need to serve Cassie, to do a good job, to have their purpose. Doxy had a hard enough time while Bella was… while she was in…" Narcissa swallowed, "Doxy was hers since she married, "She served faithfully in the Black family long before that and waited many years for Bella, she would wait in that safe house for you and then your children, she would wait out her life and sanity. Cleaning. No one to appreciate it. The job they do, a good job, a purpose. It is their life. To serve. Having no one to serve. You shouldn't do that to her. She doesn't deserve it."

Hermione nodded looking out the window. This was her life now, the life she should have had and she would embrace it, learning everything she could about the past as she learned to live again, as the woman she had always been meant to become.


End file.
